Napkin dispenser



Fb 27, 1968 E. c. KOERPER ETAL 3,370,748

NAPKIN DISPENSER Filed Sept. 13, 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet l lfm" LU.

INVENToRs.-

ERHARDT C. KOERPER TRISTAN JUERGENS l-lln Ill/l A Homey A Fell 27, 1968 Y E. c. KOERPl-:R ETAL. 3,370,748

NAPKIN DISPENSER Filed sept. 1s, 1966 2 sheets-sheet 2 INVENTORS.

g ERHARDT c. KOERPER TRISTAN JuERGl-:Ns

United States Patent O 3,370,748 NAPKIN DISPENSER Erhardt C. Koerper, Delafield, and Tristan Jnergens, Madison, Wis., assignors to Wisconsin Tissue Mills Filed Sept. 13, 1966, Ser. No. 578,625 4 Claims. (Cl. 221-59) ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE Disclosed herein is a napkin dispenser having a pull out drawer with a napkin pressure plate that is movable in tracks in the drawer and latched to the drawer when the drawer is pulled out and released from the drawer when it is pushed in.

This invention relates to a napkin dispenser, particularly for use on a counter and more particularly to an improvement in the arrangement for loading napkins into the dispenser.

There are a great many napkin dispensers on the market in which a drawer is used to hold a number of identical napkins in position to be removed from the dispenser by the user. These dispensers are loaded by pulling the drawer partially out of the housing and manually holding a spring biased pressure plate in a rearward position while the napkins are aligned in the dispenser drawer. This procedure requires a certain amount of dexterity since the operator must hold the napkins against the force of the spring acting on the pressure plate and at the same time insert the new napkins.

One of the primary objects of the present invention is to provide a means for loading napkins into a dispenser which does not have the above objectionable features.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an automatic means for latching the pressure plate in the rear of the drawer when loading the dispenser with napkins and releasing the pressure plate after the drawer is loaded.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an improved support for the pressure plate which holds the plate in a substantially vertical position at all times.

A still further object is to provide a napkin dispenser of the drawer type in which the drawer can be easily removed for cleaning.

These objects are accomplished in a napkin dispenser of the drawer type. A longitudinal type drawer open at both the front land back ends is mounted for reciprocal motion within the housing. The front of the drawer has a face plate secured to it which forms the front of both the drawer and the housing. A pressure plate is mounted in the drawer on a guide member which is slidable in tracks located on either side of the drawer. The guide member is provided with a pair of longitudinally extending parallel side members that are aligned in the tracks and center member for supporting the pressure plate in the drawer. The guide member and pressure plate are biased toward the front of the drawer by a spring that is located between the pressure plate and the back end of the drawer. When the drawer is pulled out of the housing to till the drawer with napkins, a stop means on the housing will engage the pressure plate holding it in a stationary position as the drawer is pulled out. The guide members will automatically lock into a latch in the tracks when the pressure plate is moved toward the rear of the drawer. With the pressure plate latched in position, the drawer can be lled with napkins without any interference from the pressure plate. When the drawer is pushed back into the housing the guide members will be automatically released and the pressure plate will then ICC bear against the napkins forcing them toward the front end of the drawer.

Other objects and advantages will Abecome more readily apparent from the following detailed description when read in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view in section of the napkin dispenser with the drawer pushed completely into the housing.

FIG. 2 is a front view partly in section showing the front of the housing and the position of the pressure plate in the housing.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the housing with the drawer pulled out and the pressure plate locked in a rearward position.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the lock and release arrangement for the guide member.

FIG. 5 is a view of the back of the pressure plate with the guide member secured to the back.

Referring to the drawings, the napkin dispenser includes a housing 1() in the form of a rectangular tube enclosed at one end by an end plate 12 secured to a ange 14 at the rear of the housing. A number of legs 16 may be provided at the four corners of the bottom vof the housing.

A drawer 18 is slidable within the housing and has a pair of side walls 20 and a bottom wall 22. The bottom wall rests on longitudinal beads 24 provided in a plate 26 which is secured to the inside surface in the bottom of the housing providing a space between the bottom of the drawer and the bottom of the housing. Channel members 28 are formed in the upper edges of the side walls of the drawer and are slidable within brackets 30' secured to the side walls of the housing. The channel members also are used as tracks as described below.

A front cover 34 for the housing is secured to the side walls of the drawer by brackets 36 and seats on an odset flange 38 of the housing when the drawer is pushed completely into the housing. An opening 40 is provided in the front of the cover to allow for the removal of napkins placed in the drawer.

A pressure plate 46 is mounted on a guide member 42 for longitudinal motion within the drawer. The guide member has a center member 50 that is connected to the pressure plate and a pair of parallel horizontal members 44 that are slidable in tracks in the channel members 28. The center member is shown as an inverted V but could be made in any other form or with a separate center plate having parallel horizontal members secured to it. A cover or coating of nylon or any other similar material can be applied to the horizontal members to allow for easier sliding motion in the tracks in the channel members. The pressure plate is shown with a number of odset indentations 48 which overlap the center member 50 of the guide member to hold the pressure plate in position. However, it should be apparent that other forms of securing means could be used to hold the guide member in position. The horizontal members 44 cooperate with the track in the channel to assure that the pressure plate remains in a transverse relation to its direction of motion in the drawer.

A stop bar 52 is secured to the front of the pressure plate and overlies the top of the bracket 30 on the side walls of the housing. A section 54 of the bracket is bent upward near the front of the housing in the path of the stop bar to prevent the pressure plate and guide member from coming out of the drawer. A spring 56 is positioned between the pressure plates and the back end of the drawer to bias the pressure plate toward the front end of the drawer. A bracket 58 at the rear of the drawer is used to hold the end of the spring in position.

The pressure plate is held in the rearward position within the drawer by latching the guide member in the I to the rear ofthe drawer. The guide member has sufficient exibility to provide an outward bias yon 'the end of the horizontal members against the bent tabs V62. When the drawer is pulled out of the housing, the stop bar on the pressure plate Will engage section 54 on the top of bracket 30 holding the pressure plate in a stationary position. It should ybe apparent that when the drawer is pulled far enough Vout of the housing, Vthe pressure plate will be latched in the back end of the track by the engagement of horizontal members 44 with tabs 62. After the drawer is illed withrnapkins, it is pushed completely into the housing until the ends 64 of the members 44 are forced inward by inwardly bent arcuate tabs 66 provided on the side wall of the housing. The arcuate tabs will release the horizontal members from the tabs 62 by forcing the ends of the horizontal members inward allowing the spring to force the pressure plate against the napkins in the drawer. It is also possible to provide a manual release in the side wall of the housing to release the horizontal members.

The drawer is held in its closed position by a spring latch 70 located in 'the bottom of the housing which snaps into aperture 72 in the bottom of the drawer. `By depressing the spring latch the drawer will be released so it can be pulled outward. When the drawer is pulled as far outward as is permissible the spring latch will snap into aperture 74 at the back end ofthe drawer with sufficient force to hold the drawer in position. When the drawer is ypushed inward, there will vbe suicient camming action applied to the spring to force it downward out of the path Y of the drawer.

Although only one embodiment ofthe present invention has been shown and described it should be apparent that various changes and modifications can be made herein without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

What Vis claimed is:

1. A napkin dispenser comprising a housing, l

a drawer reciprocally movable within said housing between an open and closed position,

channel type tracks in said drawer,

'a guide member movable in said tracks,

a pressure plate secured to said guide member in a transverse position with respect to its direction of motion in Said drawer,

spring means positioned to bias'the pressure plate toward one end of said drawer,

latch means in said tracks positioned to engage said guide member when the drawer is pulled Aout ofthe housing and the pressure plate is pushed toward the other end of the drawer,

.and release means on said housing to release the guide member from the latch means when the drawer is moved to the closed position.

2. A napkin ydispenser according to claim 1 wherein said guide member comprises a resilient wire having two parallel members slidable within saidV tracks and a center member interconnecting said parallel members, said pressure plate being secured to the center member, said parallel members cooperating with said-tracks to hold the pressure plate ina transverse relation to its direction of travel in said drawer and having notches in the outer edges of said parallel members to engage said latch means. 3. A napkin dispenser according to claim 2 wherein said latch means comprises an inwardly bent tab located in said track in a position to engage the parallel members of said guide member when the guide member is pushed toward the other end of the drawer.

4. A napkin dispenser according to claim 3 wherein said release means comprises inwardly curved tabs secured to the inside surfaces of the housing in a position to engage and deect the ends of the parallel members to deect and release them from the tabs in the track whereby said guide members will be released when the draweris fully closed in the housing. Y

References Cited UNTTED STATES PATENTS 1,895,661 1/1933 Horwitt 2217-59 2,277,815 3/1942 smeren et a1 221-57 X 2,831,602 4/1958 Chaplin 221-59 3,071,290 1/1963 Taylor 2211-59 3,199,723 s/1965 Hein 221-59XV SAMUEL F. COLEMAN, Primary Examiner. 

